KoreaTimes - Columnists

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

Opinion

Columnists

Park Moo-jong

Audacity of the thief

To describe a certain situation, emotion or psychological condition in our daily lives, we used to quote traditional Chinese idiomatic expressions, most of which consist of four Chinese characters. The idioms numbering around 5,000 are mostly derived from ancient literature, called "saja-seongeo” (四字成語) in Korean and in Chinese.

2017-02-23 16:15

How many times did you say today, "I have been so busy all day?" People these days, notably we, Koreans, habitually blurt out, "I am so busy." The highlight of the expression in Korea about being too busy can mean, "I am so busy that I don't even have time to die," or "I am too busy to find a time to eat." I wonder if no time to eat may mean a time to die. What a pity!

2017-02-16 18:20

Tent villages in the heart of Seoul

Have you ever imagined seeing a refugee camp in the heart of the capital city of the Republic of Korea? Most people will say “nope.” But there are many. Alas, a huge “tent village” has been in existence for 1,000 days as of yesterday in Gwanghwamun Square, the very center of Seoul. Adjacent to the area are some important national and foreign facilities such as the Government Complex Building, the Sejong Center for Culture and Arts and the U.S. Embassy, among others.

2017-02-09 17:23

History of blacklists

The government’s blacklist of a total of 9,473 artists and cultural figures has reminded many people of the censorship and oppression under the administration of Park Chung-hee (1961-1979), the father of the embattled President Park Geun-hye. To the shock of the people, several former and present high ranking officials of the Ministry of Culture, Sport and Tourism and the presidential secretariat involved in concocting the blacklist have been put behind bars over the past several weeks.

2017-02-02 16:48

Flourishing private etiquette lesson

Home education is no less important than school education.

2017-01-26 15:46

Slaves of smartphone

It's been 10 years since the late Steve Jobs (1955-2011) introduced the sensational iPhone, namely smartphone, in June 2007 to help change the daily life of the mankind from then on.

2017-01-19 16:55

Oldest existing political party

The KBS-2 quiz show "1 vs. 100," broadcast on every Tuesday evening, is enjoying steady popularity since it debuted in May 2007 with a coveted cash prize of 50 million won ($41.5 million) at stake. Enjoying a very high viewing rate of 5.8 percent as a quiz show, the producers must be racking their brains immediately after each show over how to come up with questions. I recommend two good questions, though they are very difficult for the comparatively young contestants. One is: "Which is the oldest existing political party in Korea? The other is: "How many political parties have there been ov...

2017-01-12 16:34

Really? Days of distrust

What's taking place these days testifies to our life in the age of distrust.

2017-01-05 16:32

The Year of Confusion

Finally, the "Year of Confusion" as I define the "Year of the Monkey" is fading into history.

2016-12-29 16:48

Christmas Eve of 2016

Around this time of every year, many people, either Christians or non-Christians, used to be aflutter with the thought of enjoying Christmas in a somewhat heady social atmosphere.

2016-12-23 09:19

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Top 10 Stories

1	4 in 10 Koreans experience overdue wages: survey

2	Tanghulu captures hearts of Korean millennials and Gen Z

3	PHOTOSHarvest season arrives

4	K-pop fans rally in Seoul against luxury brands' failure on climate action

5	Korean gov't faces international criticism for R&D budget cuts

6	LG Uplus, Hanwha develop ceiling-mounted EV charging system

7	EXCLUSIVELawmakers to submit resolution urging China to free N. Korean escapees

8	SK earthon begins crude oil production in South China Sea

9	Main opposition chief in showdown with prosecutors over arrest

10	Homeplus' private brand products hit store shelves in Mongolia

DARKROOM